


The Last Prince of Lothric

by AvixiLynn91



Category: Dark Souls (Video Games), Dark Souls III
Genre: Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Angst, Demon Prince, Growing Apart, Growing Up, Lorian is almost 5 years older than Lothric, Lothric loves Lorian, M/M, Mild Incest, Old Demon King, One-Sided Attraction, Sad Ending, Surprise Kissing, They're still twins somehow, Unrequited Crush, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 04:58:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17258000
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AvixiLynn91/pseuds/AvixiLynn91
Summary: Sometimes it's wiser to bury burning questions and curiosity in the back of one's mind. To pursue such thoughts and answers can lead to fatal results and be one's downfall. Oftentimes, remaining cold and emotionally detached will be the greatest way a warrior can prepare himself for battle. After all, the mind and the body need to be unburdened before engaging in bloodshed and carnage...Lothric sneaks into Lorian's bedchambers on the eve of his older brother's battle with the Demon Prince. He has a question for his older brother, who's been avoiding him for weeks. But will he want to hear the answer he's given?





	The Last Prince of Lothric

 

He’d heard tales of a Demon Prince within the depths of The Ringed City long before he held his first sword. His mother, the Queen of Lothric, would often visit him whenever she found the luxury to, passing down the stories originating of that once-great Kingdom that was now ash and fallen ruins. The story had captivated him so much when he first heard it, that Lorian had to be severely disciplined by his wet nurse, High Priestess Emma. She’d been trying to teach Lorian how to play the harpsichord, but he didn’t care for it as visions of fire and brimstone flashed in his eyes.

Emma had sent him to his room without supper that same evening when he refused to obey her for the final time.

Lorian couldn’t help it: he’d wanted to explore The Ringed City on his own.

It was a promise he made himself, and from that day forward, he worked hard to keep that promise. Every day, he trained hard. He didn’t take a moment’s rest, not wanting to show weakness. His father, King Oceiros, was concerned when Lorian collapsed in the middle of his physical training one day with a fever.

Emma fawned over him along with the rest of the nurses until he had woken up after fainting, and the moment he did, Emma gave him a harsh scolding as she forced him to recite a hundred lines.

Still, that never kept the young Prince out of trouble for long…

While Lorian was built for speed, strength, and the harshest battles, he knew his twin brother Prince Lothric wasn’t. It was an unfortunate-yet well known-fact that the younger Prince was ‘gifted’ in many special ways…

From the moment he was born, a deadly, dull chill was felt all throughout Lothric Castle. The Queen went into a most violent, painful labor, and the nurses had to remain at her bedside for almost two full nights until she’d recuperated most of her strength to speak a few words to the King.

Lorian wasn’t allowed to see her, as the King told him that the child was very sickly. Fearful of an infection spreading to the newborn, the King and Queen left the newborn Prince to the hands of Emma.

Though he was almost five years of age at the time, Lothric remembered his younger brother’s birth vividly. The entire castle was soon whispering about rumors of a sickly child that would soon save the Kingdom and link the fire…

Lorian didn’t understand what the adults meant by that, and any moment he’d tried asking his father, King Oceiros, the powerful King was far too busy with other issues and told Lorian to abandon the subject. When Lorian persisted, one angry glare from his father sent him running back to his room, where he’d spent the remainder of the day in hiding.

Days stretched on to weeks and months before Lorian forgot about his younger brother. Emma allowed Lorian to see his brother for the very first time when Lorian was just shy of turning ten years of age…

Lorian remembered being called forth from a horseback riding lesson, his father and Emma requesting his presence at the grand hall of Lothric Castle. Lorian approached confidently, holding his head high and neck stretched tall as he’d been taught to walk like a strong ruler already. Many servants in the castle bowed as he walked past them and into the Grand Hall. At the front of the room, he saw his father standing with a young blonde child…

The child was young Prince Lothric. He was indeed quite thin, and his skin was horribly pale, like that of a ghost. He had small dark circles under his eyes, and Lorian made a strange face at him when they first met, which earned him a hash slap across the face by Emma.

Apparently, he wasn’t ever allowed to insult the young Prince. Lorian was to guide his younger brother, help him, care for him, teach him whatever he could in order that he would remain strong and be a true leader the Kingdom deserved.

Lorian wasn’t sure how he was meant to accomplish this great task set upon him at such a young age, but he bowed before his father and left the Grand Hall, though he felt young Lothric’s eyes on him the entire time until he was out of his sight.

Years passed with Lorian and Lothric not interacting much due to Lothric constantly being fragile, weak, ill, and often exhausted. King Oceiros wasn’t interested in any of what he called the ‘excuses’ were coming from Lorian when he refused to help Lothric further. As far as the King was concerned, Lorian had to remain close to Lothric at all times.

Lorian soon began to feel that there was a strong underlying reason for this order put in place, though he was far too young to understand it on his own. All he could do was obey his father, stay out of trouble, not worry and stress out his mother, and learn his lessons well with Emma.

Years soon sped by, and Lorian was lost in the routines within the castle. He’d often train vigorously, and the older he grew, the more advanced his training became. Lorian worked hard, and at the age of sixteen, he’d already developed his body much like his father’s.

Lorian was well-defined and covered in pure muscle. His pale blonde hair soon grew out past his shoulders, hitting the center of his back. It was a sign of his masculinity, and soon, his father had felt this his son was ‘breeding’ ready. He’d allowed a wide range of other Kingdom’s Princesses to visit the castle, and a lot of them gushed over Lorian, practically worshipping the ground he walked on.

As beautiful and magnificent Lorian was in his physical appearance and strength, his younger brother was the entire opposite. He was certainly tall-though not nearly as tall as Lorian-and quite thin. His arms were as thin and lithe as that of a Princess’s, and while his hair was almost as long as Lorian’s, it wasn’t as thick or shiny. It didn’t hold the same luster that Lorian’s did, and whenever the sunlight hit it, it just seemed as white and cold as freshly fallen snow. Lothric’s skin was also as white as his hair color, and it made the already prominent dark circles under his eyes stick out more.

Soon, Lothric had to clothe himself in a ‘Prayer Robe’, and it was all he knew for the rest of his young life as he grew. The outfit was hardly befitting that of a royal Prince; it was a dark robe that had small twinge of violet in it, the fabric rather thin. It was decorated with an assembly of golden flower-like jewels, though Lothric didn’t seem to care for these things.

Lorian supposed it was a gift Emma had made for him, and he soon began to feel a little guilty given the fact that he was allowed to wear such expensive, fancy robes, while Lothric constantly was seen in the same garments.

But he never voiced his opinions, as he was far too busy traveling and competing with other Princes to have time to cater to Lothric.

It seemed as if the rest of the castle did, however; most of the ladies and servants bustling around often brought with them tiny trinkets to please the young Prince, but Lothric merely accepted them forcefully as he stared down humbly at his hands while seated on his throne next to his father and mother.

Each day that passed, Lorian grew stronger, while Lothric grew weaker. Despite being thin and frail, Lothric wasn’t without talents…

\----------------

It had been a hot summer day when Lorian was feeding his mighty steed. He moved the haystacks over by placing them on his shoulders as he carried them and placed them before his horse to feast on. As he pet the animal, he sensed he was being watched.

Lorian peered up into one of the large castle windows, and as the rays of the sun above hit his eyes, he could clearly make out Lothric’s sickly face gazing down at him from the high window…

Their eyes met, and as Lorian waved his hand at his younger brother, Lothric’s blue eyes widened, and suddenly, a flash burst around him. It lit up the window brighter than any star could, or even the sun. In a heartbeat, he was gone.

Lorian couldn’t believe it, but he’d questioned Lothric about it later when his father had requested that Lothric wished for Lorian to engage him and entertain him as he walked about the large old library.

Lorian could hardly wait to satiate his burning curiosity, and it seemed as if Lothric didn’t mind it at all. The twelve-year-old Prince waited until the guards were posted outside the door of the large library before he linked his arm around Lorian’s and they walked around the library slowly.

“I have unique powers, dear brother,” Lothric had admitted his secret to Lorian in a faint whisper, and Lorian felt himself panicking as he remembered the flash of light before Lothric had disappeared from the window. He believed his brother immediately, knowing for certain that there wasn’t any feasible way that the weak Prince could have traveled across his room with that quick speed.

Lorian kept his voice low as he asked Lothric what kinds of powers he had.

Lothric smiled at his older brother as he pointed up a long black ladder resting on one of the walls of the library. “Watch, brother.”

As Lorian kept his eyes on the ladder, he saw it fly slowly upwards into the air a few feet, and then it came settling back down onto the floors.

“Have you moved it?” He asked as he ran towards it, searching for a trick behind what he’d just witnessed.

Lothric gently rested a small hand on his brother’s broad shoulder. “You needn’t search for a trace of trickery; your eyes do not deceive you.”

“It’s sorcery!” Lorian gasped, covering his mouth the moment the word sprang out. They had to keep quiet, otherwise the castle would likely separate them for years, possibly longer. Witchcraft and sorcery was an art their mother and father abhorred, but didn’t exactly banish from the lands. However, if they found out that the young Prince meant to save the entire fate of their Kingdom was a sorcerer? Now that was an entirely different problem of itself.

Lorian didn’t wish to think of the consequences, and he stared at his quivering brother. It seemed as if Lothric was feeling and thinking similar thoughts.

A thought ran through Lorian’s mind just then as he looked at his brother’s thin form. He smiled as he stood to his feet and draped an arm over his brother’s shoulder.

“Rest assured, little brother, your secret is safe with me.”

His confident voice and strong promise comforted Lothric for the rest of the day, and they were able to resume their walk around the library, losing track of time as they laughed and joked like two friends would.

As time passed, Lorian sensed that Lothric’s magic was growing stronger. He hadn’t been incorrect.

Lothric called him to his bedchambers one afternoon, and he informed Lorian that they had to wait until nightfall. Lorian patiently waited, and the moment the sky around them grew dark, a little glow grew in the corner of Lothric’s room before it grew larger and larger.

It was a small white light that shined like a star, and Lorian was transfixed as he watched his little brother manipulate it and control it as if it were a toy. Lothric held up his skinny arms, and as he pressed his palms together, an even larger, brighter white light soon appeared between both his hands and exploded into the room.

Thinking it would cause them harm, Lothric shielded his brother as he dove beneath the large four-poster bed in the center of the room. Once they were hidden beneath the bed, Lothric gently tapped on Lorian’s shoulder as he pushed aside the heavy quilts that were covering their eyes.

“Lorian, there’s no need to fear it…”

As Lorian curiously peeked out from beneath the bed, he saw the large ball of light Lothric had conjured with his bare hands break away into a dozen little lights. Each of them danced away into the air, circling the room before they floated out the window and into the night sky. As Lorian watched in shock and admiration, the lights floated upwards as they rested among the other stars in the bright night sky.

It was a beautiful sight to behold.

Lorian made it a regular habit to join Lothric in his bedchambers at least once a week, and he sat back in a large chair by a fireplace as he watched Lothric practice and perfect his magic to the point where he turned it into his own art form. Lorian was more and more amazed by his brother every day, and he soon couldn’t help letting it posses him as time passed.

Unfortunately, as both Prince brothers aged, they drifted apart. As Lorian decided to focus more on physical strength and battles, Lothric turned his passion towards magic and healing. In time, his powers were discovered when the castle chef accidentally fell sideways into a cauldron that was boiling with oil. The poor woman had burnt at least half her body, and everyone felt there was no hope for her as she lay in a bed. Welts formed on her skin, but when Lothric entered the room, he assured the others already present that he would be able to save the woman’s life.

As they all gaped in horror, Lothric held his hands together above her, and a strong white light was cast down at her. In a second, her skin was normal, and she stated she felt completely fine.

The discovery had been reported to his father, and strangely, King Oceiros hadn’t reacted in the way Lorian and Lothric originally feared he would. King Oceiros merely smiled and clapped, a triumphant expression on his face as he paraded with Lothric around the lands outside the castle.

It was a joyous day of celebration, and before long, the entire Kingdom had learned of Lothric’s powers. The young boy drew much attention to himself as many sets of eyes across the land came to visit him, basking in the glory of his magic as he performed countless times before many large crowds. The gatherings grew more and more, the people larger and larger in numbers every time…

And Lothric was performing the same old tricks soon, like a trained animal was supposed to…

Where Lothric had once found a confidant and companion in Lorian, he was now unfortunately unable to turn to his brother for help or consolation when he needed it most. He didn’t mind, however, growing accustomed slowly to the life of a ‘freak’. It was a curse he had to suffer alone, and he much preferred it if he didn’t drag his older brother down with him in the process. If one of them was to be a proud warrior basking in the bright light of victory, he preferred it to be Lorian.

As the seasons changed around them, the brothers hardly saw each other much as they were busy with their differing tasks and activities. Snow had fallen across the lands when a large feast was held in the dining hall of the castle, and it was then that for the first time in what felt like a full year, Lothric cast eyes on his older brother.

They sat far apart from each other during the course of the meal, but it suited both of them just fine as they avoided eye contact with each other. Lothric worried he would sully and dirty his brother just by looking at him for a mere second, so he humbly held his head down, hood pulled over his head as he sat and observed a mass prayer with the rest of the castle dwellers and royal family.

Once during the prayer, he felt someone staring at him, and he looked up in time to catch Lorian’s eyes before the elder Prince looked back down at his plate, eyes closed as he focused on the prayer.

\----------------

It wasn’t much longer after the grand feast that Lorian and Lothric had their first verbal dispute.

Lorian had turned nineteen when a beautiful dark-haired Princess came to visit Lothric Castle with her father. Princess Filianore was from The Ringed City, and though the nature of her visit was unknown, Lothric felt his stomach turning and tying itself in knots when he heard a few servant girls whispering between each other that she was to be betrothed to Prince Lorian.

That was the first time Prince Lothric felt genuinely sick. It was surprising given the fact that the younger Prince hadn’t felt as dizzy and nervous in months. He’d actually been feeling quite energetic and healthy, even so much as being able to take horseback riding lessons and swim about the small river near the castle.

But now, Lothric felt weak, and before he knew it, his hands shook as dark sparks flew between each of his fingers. They hit the walls of the castle and caused little explosions. The damage was quite potent, and within minutes of it all happening, Lothric had fainted on the floor.

Lorian was at his bedside when he came to, and Emma was dabbing a warm washcloth over his face as she held a steaming bowl of water in another hand.

Prince Lothric ordered her out of his bedchambers angrily, but he said Prince Lorian could stay.

The tall nineteen-year-old Prince stood before the angry fifteen-year-old brother of his for many long minutes before Lothric yelled out: “Why’s she here in the castle?”

Lorian knew exactly who ‘she’ was. He smiled grimly at his younger brother, his cold blue eyes tearing through Lothric’s heart. “It doesn’t concern you, younger brother.”

He hadn’t been able to hold back as he shouted: “Why not?!?”

Ignoring his question, Prince Lorian bowed stiffly, his long blonde hair sweeping over both his shoulders as gravity pulled the strands down.

“I must excuse myself, younger brother,” Lorian whispered as he headed towards the door of the bedchamber. “Father wishes to see me.”

He hadn’t even wished that Lothric would get better, soon…

\----------------

No one would provide him with a straight answer whenever he’d tried to investigate and inquire about the nature of the frequent visits from Princess Filianore, and Prince Lothric’s anger and curiosity had led him to impulsiveness.

He’d found Prince Lorian polishing his swords and shields one evening as he sat upon a stool in his own bedchamber. The metal shined brightly even in the dim lights the candles mounted on the walls provided, and for a moment, Lothric began to truly wonder just how many monsters and vicious creatures his older brother had slayed with the mighty swords he was currently cleaning…

Lorian sensed his younger brother’s presence without even turning to stare back at him as Lothric lingered in the doorway for far too long.

“You’ll catch your death if you keep lingering in the halls like that,” he stated with almost a sigh, “after all, you’re only wearing that silly robe.”

Lothric’s anger hit a new high as he stormed inside the bedchambers of his older brother without being invited in first. “I wanted to check up on you.”

“Whatever for?” The cold reply hit him unexpectedly, but he shrugged his reactions off his shoulders in a neat motion.

“To see if that _Princess_ ,” he spat with venom, “…was possibly lounging in your bed.”

Lorian chuckled a deep chuckle that made his chest and throat vibrate. “Such lewd thoughts are unbecoming of a man your age.”

“Unlike _some_ people in this castle, I value my reputation!” Lothric hissed as he avoided looking at Lorian’s large bed. Had the Princess really been here?

Lorian set a sword on a large wooden table as he flipped his long blonde hair over his shoulder when he turned to look at his younger brother.

“Even if she had been accompanying me, it would be a personal affair between the two of us only, my brother.”

This made Lothric furious. He knew he was turning slightly red as he imagined Lorian taking the Princess’s hand in his, and placing a soft kiss on the back of her hand as she smiled lovingly down at him…

The thought drove him mad as he stood fuming on the spot. “We’re royalty, _brother_ ,” he hissed in a drawl that Lorian ignored as he held his hands in his lap.

“…we must set an example, otherwise we will be shaming our parents!”

“Indeed, brother.”

“If you so choose to have her, you should have her for life.” He didn’t want to think of it, but if it was for the sake of Lorian’s happiness, he would accept it. Even though it hurt and cut him like a spear to the heart would have, Lothric’s words were meaningful and sincere as he held his head down and stared down at his feet.

Lorian’s bare feet were right before his own suddenly, and he looked at the tips of his older brother’s blonde hair, refusing to meet his eyes as he felt Lorian staring at him intently.

Lorian leaned in close to Lothric as he scoffed, “If I were to have her, brother, it would only be for a night…”

Before he could behave in ways and manners befitting a lowly beast, Lothric ran from the bedchamber, the door slamming behind him as it echoed all throughout the castle.

\----------------

“I don’t love you,” Lothric said coldly, wielding his words like a weapon.

Lorian didn’t respond or flinch, didn’t speak. He sat rod straight in his chair and watched flames dance in the fireplace. They painted his features amber-gold, wisps of firelight like talons clawing down his face.

Lothric wanted him to react to the statement he’d uttered, but Lorian had gone and disappointed him again. He didn’t move a single muscle as he sat before the fire, eyes not moving for the longest time.

Having no other choice but to give up, Lothric retired to his own bed before supper, his mood sour, his stomach in knots and head a pitiful mess of noise and static.

\----------------

His words were all he had, and Lothric knew this. He chose to spit them like venom and swallowed down the backwash poison. “I’m sickened just to look at you,” he said, pushing eggs and bacon around his plate with the tines of his fork. “I should call father and tell him where to find you. I won’t ever have to look at you again.”

He’d been resorting to lowly threats when he saw how wonderfully the Princess and his older brother paired off together, talking and laughing with each other as they took long evening strolls around the grounds of the castle. Lothric even bet that they’d held each other in an embrace specially reserved for man and wife, though Prince Lorian assured his brother he hadn’t, and he held no such desires for Princess Filianore.

Lothric didn’t believe him as he stopped eating the rest of his breakfast. “I’m going to tell father right now that I saw you with her just yesterday eve.”

Lorian took a measured breath as he downed the rest of his porridge slowly. “Perhaps you should,” he said, calm, or perhaps entirely defeated.

Their eyes met across the large table, and the implication was clearly written in Lorian’s eyes. There would be no way for Lothric to tell their father; Prince Lorian was entirely a grown man, and he was responsible and accountable for his own choices and actions.

He left his breakfast cold on the table.

\----------------

The tension was at its peak, and like a man dangling and teetering at the edge of a large, bottomless cliff, it was only a matter of time before something was let go to fall into the treacherous depths below to be swallowed whole and destroyed.

The friendship had been lost, entirely broken and incapable of being mended ever again. But it wasn’t enough to fuel Lothric’s anger with his older brother nearly enough to wish him harm or death when he heard of the news their father had announced before a few royal families they were dining with and entertaining one night.

The day he was to turn twenty-one, Prince Lorian was going to venture out into The Ringed City all by himself, and he was going to single-handedly slay the Demon Prince. He was going to bring back the Demon Prince’s severed head as a souvenir and mount it high on the walls of the castle, a proud monument to the end of the terror the Demon Prince’s name was responsible for wielding.

He’d set aside his judgements, anger, sadness, and childish selfishness as he cast a worried glance across the hall at his brother.

Lorian refused to meet his eyes as he ascended the spiral stairs leading to his bedchambers for the night.

\----------------

Another year flew by their heads too quickly. Lorian had hardly been seen around the castle, instead out on strenuous training only the best of his father’s men were able to provide. The twenty-year old Prince had drastically changed in the last year. Slightly taller than before, he was pure muscle and masculinity. He looked more vicious and crueler when Lothric laid eyes on him one morning when he had returned from hunting down the Old Demon King in the Catacombs of Carthus.

Despite looking exhausted beyond belief, Lorian simply remained by their father’s side until he was given permission to retire to his room for the night.

Lothric followed him up towards his bedchambers, narrowly avoiding a few guards as they marched up and down the halls. When he was certain they were far away from him, he came out from his hiding spot and gently pushed open the large oak door of Lorian’s bedchambers.

The room was slightly dark, but Lothric could make Lorian out as he sat on the edge of his bed, his back facing Lothric as he stared out a dark window. His long blonde hair blew back by a warm breeze that swept inside the room from the open windows.

“You can make it all go away,” Lothric stated in a soft tone, pressing his hands right up against the edge of the bed, fingers clenched tightly around the sheets. “Return to your family, the simple life of a brother and son. A young man completely unhinged who thinks of killing nothing but the spider out of reach of tiny hands.”

Lorian’s shoulders were broad and his back was stiff as he sat like a stone statue. Lothric knew he’d heard him when he simply said: “I leave in the morning before sunrise for The Ringed City.”

They both knew the risk that perilous journey held, but Lothric said nothing as he looked at Lorian’s back.

“You don’t need permission to kill yourself. Your life is yours to take when you see fit.” His voice quivered, too small for the words he’d forced himself to convey. Though Lothric was certain he didn’t mean the words, he couldn’t help but remember how their friendship had crumbled so quickly when Lorian chose a different walk of life. He knew it was wrong to despise his older brother for simply living the life he’d been conceived and born to live, but he felt abandoned and left when he needed his brother’s comforting words the most…

Turning around, Lorian smiled, and it was all teeth. He pushed his body up as he rose from the bed. He walked menacingly towards his younger twin, his pale blonde hair making his white skin stand out, almost appearing like a ghoul. “Should I help you ease the way for me? Fall helplessly into your arms? Is that what you want me to say and do?”

Lothric took a step back, his hands trembling as he watched his brother approach him more. “Stay away from me.”

The warning was ignored. “Do you think _my_ life was any easier than yours?”

Lothric shook his head, his long hair that was normally held back beneath the hood of the Prayer Garb falling and covering his chin and cheeks as he stepped back and pressed himself against a cold wall of the room.

“We’ve both suffered, my brother,” he whispered painfully, “…but at least you weren’t cursed with the life of a performing ape!!”

Lorian scoffed dismissively, “You know not of what you say.”

“I DO!” Lothric couldn’t help the volume of his voice, and it made his older brother take a few steps back as his eyes widened slightly.

“What’s this, then?”

Lothric willed himself not to cry. “All my life I lived in their expectations, and I was so scared that they would cast me out when they found out what I could do…what I was! You’ve never had to live in that fear!”

It was true, though Lorian snorted as he placed a hand on his hip, “You’ve held mother and father’s attention for _years_ , while I was trying to fight with all my strength and power to earn favour in their eyes for just a moment.” Lorian looked down at Lothric’s chin as it quivered.

“I did whatever I could to please them, so they wouldn’t expect too much from you! I didn’t want you to suffer!”

Lorian suddenly reached out with a hand and pressed the palm of it against Lothric’s chest right where his heart was located, “Whatever you feel _there_ , I feel too…father told me that we’re bound together by fate, by a dark magic…”

He didn’t want to believe it, and thinking his older brother was toying with him, Lothric shoved the hand at his chest away, “Don’t you dare touch me ever again!”

Lorian drew even closer to him, and Lothric felt himself practically molding into the wall as he pressed himself even closer against it.

“I wanted you to be the pride of Lothric Castle…that’s why I stayed away…” the words died down on Lothric’s lips, but Lorian heard them anyway.

“Avoiding me was the biggest mistake you could ever make.”

“Why?”

Lorian paused as he sighed, placing a hand over his forehead, “Because I need you more than you think.”

The tears that stang in Lothric’s eyes and threatened to spill forth couldn’t be contained. He let them flow down his cheeks and dry salty against his lips. “Stop it.” His voice cracked as his white knuckles held onto the stone walls behind him. “Just stop.”

Lorian gripped his younger brother’s shoulder tightly, “Please, brother…”

“No…”

“If I am triumphant in my battle, I am to be wedded to Princess Filianore.”

Lothric stared in horror at his brother, his ears buzzing and stinging as if they were bleeding. “You…” tremors shook across his body, and he gaped at his older twin.

Lorian nodded, “I need you to be my guide, so I can have a chance at life, at love…”

So he was being used…growling angrily at the back of his throat, Lothric shoved Lorian aside with a long hand as he pushed himself off the wall he’d been flatly pressing himself against. The shove had taken his older brother by surprise so much that Lorian went stumbling back into the center of the room. Lothric huffed out his frustration, tears hot as he snarled and turned around. He lunged for Lorian, throwing himself on top of his older brother as he flung them both down onto the rug sitting before the large fireplace in the room.

Lothric was trying to wrap his hands around Lorian’s throat, but Lorian held him off as he gripped both of Lothric’s pencil-thin wrists in his large, strong hands.

“I hate you.”

Lorian swallowed hard as he was careful not to add pressure against Lothric’s grip, not wanting to break his younger brother’s bones. “Do you find it easier this way? Fighting against yourself? Fighting against so many hard-earned truths?”

Lothric saw a few of his tears dripping onto Lothric’s chin and cheeks. “You disgust me.”

Lorian only smiled evilly up at his brother as their bodies pressed flatly against each other’s, the fire blazing in the fireplace next to them. “Are you going to now tell me about how much you’ve given for me? And how much you’ve sacrificed for me?”

Prince Lothric couldn’t bear to hear the words. He cried softly, his eyes clenching shut slowly.

Lorian smiled again, laughing darkly as much as he could with Lothric’s hands still wrapped around his neck. “When you say the words, do you begin to believe them?” Lorian’s knee came out and pressed right in between Lothric’s legs, riding up until it was sitting just beneath the hem of his Prayer Robe.

In the momentary distraction, Lorian used his powerful strength to flip them both over, and his hand came to cradle the back of his younger brother’s head as he pressed Lothric down on the rug and gently held his weight on both his knees, not wanting to crush his younger brother as he hovered above him.

Lothric scoffed as he shook his head. “You’re always treating me like some fragile glass ready to be shattered at any given moment.”

“I don’t want to hurt you,” his older brother stated evenly, yet his voice was tired. He seemed suddenly so very tired. “I think maybe I’m just punishing myself. Rejecting… everything that you’ve become. Everything that I know you are.”

Lothric looked at his brother’s hair before staring deeply into his blue eyes. “So what’s left, brother?”

“One final fight to the death.” Lorian’s answer frightened him, but he tried not to let it show as he pressed a hand up and gently held Lorian’s chin.

“You’ve tried that, Lorian. Too many times. Yet here we are, alive to suffer another day together.”

Lorian didn’t stir, but a soft and vulnerable expression crossed his face. He suddenly reminded Lothric of how frightened and alone he himself was when he was only a few years younger. “Should our days together require suffering? Is that all there is for us, Lothric?”

Lothric gazed down at his own hand still cupping Lorian’s well-defined chin. “Seems to be all we know.”

His older twin reached over for Lothric’s hand on his chin, covering it with his own as he sighed and closed his eyes.

Lorian’s nostrils flared slightly as he took a deep breath. “You don’t hate me.”

They both knew Lothric never could hate Lorian, and Lothric nodded in confirmation as he traced Lorian’s facial features over with his eyes. “I never have hated you, brother. Even when you made me suffer unspeakably. Can’t change it any more than I can the tides.”

Eyes still closed, Lorian’s fingers wove between Lothric’s as he gently pushed their hands down to rest by the side of Lothric’s head on the floor. “I’m not going to succeed in the battle…”

“You don’t really mean that; it’s just nerves.” Lothric tried consoling his brother, but it seemed like they both were uncertain, and it pulled at Lothric’s heart in a horrible way. He’d always considered himself a healer, and here was his older brother, suffering the most horrible wound: the one that involved the heart. He felt so incredibly useless as he felt more tears falling from his eyes as he felt Lorian’s forehead coming to press against his own.

Lothric’s eyes suddenly fell down to Lorian’s pink lips, and he gasped, “I want you.” Lothric’s words came out in the softest whisper. He was so small there on the floor, his Prayer Robe bunched around his pale, hairless knees, eyes pleading.

Lorian hadn’t heard him.

Feeling courageous suddenly, Lothric took one last look at Lorian’s lips barely hovering an inch above his own. His eyes slowly closed as he decreased the distance between his mouth and his brother’s. Lothric met Lorian’s lips with a gentle whimper, the most tender touch he’d ever shared with anyone in his entire life. He sighed into his brother’s mouth and allowed himself to curl his fingers down over the back of Lorian’s as he held as tightly as he could onto his older brother’s hand.

And the moment was gone before it even began.

Tearing his lips off his younger brother’s roughly, Lorian pushed himself off the floor. He leapt up to his feet, his hands coming up to touch his lips. He recoiled as if burned, and he looked down at Lothric with a gasp. His eyes were blown wide open, and his eyebrows twitched in the most uncomfortable manner…

He looked absolutely terrified.

He shook violently, and his skin grew even more pale than it already was. His hair looked orange in the glow of the fire flames, and he nearly tripped over his own feet as he walked around Lothric carefully, as if he were a malformed creature writhing on the floor instead of his own flesh and blood…

It hurt more than Lothric could have possibly imagined. There was nothing else left to be said.

He rose from his spot on the floor, and he ran towards the door without a single word.

A cold, harsh wind breezed through the castle that night, howling and wailing like the cries of a lost child.

It was still no match for how hard Prince Lothric was crying beneath his bed as he hid himself away from the world.

\----------------

The morning air was crisp and cool. It made the floors of the room feel even colder when Lothric felt it seep into his bones and cheeks. He stirred quickly, noticing that he’d fallen asleep beneath his bed.

He looked around, unsure of why he almost expected a younger Lorian to be beneath the bed beside him, but he wasn’t surprised to find that he was all alone…

The sound of a horse neighing was loud outside his window. The voices of people cheering soon followed, and loud clapping sounded from beneath.

Lothric ran to his bedchamber window, and he brushed away some of the steam that had been fogging onto his window as he breathed quickly after having forced his little body to exert himself suddenly.

He saw a large crowd beneath his window. Majority of them were holding the Lothric Banner in their hands and they waved it high above their heads in the air. A horse neighed again, and Lothric saw the majestic black stallion that belonged to Prince Lorian.

It was decorated in jewels and gold, and Lothric was able to make out the crowns of his mother and father as they stood before the horse.

Then, he saw the cold grey armor of his older brother…

Prince Lorian walked with his head held high, and he mounted his horse as the crowd surrounding him cheered excitedly. Horns blasted and a little maiden threw flower petals at the hooves of Prince Lorian’s horse. It shook its head and Lorian held out a hand as he smiled at the crowd.

Their cheers grew louder and louder as he waved at them. The drawbridge of the castle descended, and Lorian turned his horse to face the open lands before them.

As Lothric watched on from above in his bedchamber, he saw Lorian guide the horse for a few steps before he pulled back on the reigns.

King Oceiros approached and he handed Lorian a dark, long, heavy sword…

The father and son bowed their heads at each other, and as Lothric watched, Lorian looked up at the crowd one last time as he turned around to face the open fields before the castle.

He seemed to take a deep breath, and in a split second, he turned and glanced up directly at Lothric’s window.

Their eyes met again as they had once so many years ago.

Lothric felt the same frozen feeling crawling across his body and it rooted him as it paralyzed his body on the spot. He was unable to move as he kept looking down into his older brother’s eyes…

And then, the connection had been broken off.

Prince Lorian pressed onward, his long blonde hair waving in the wind as his horse practically flew across the luscious green grass. Its heavy hooves were heard for a while before they grew faint.

Lothric only stepped away from the window when Prince Lorian was barely a tiny black dot on the horizon below.

“I will pray for a safe return, dear brother…may the flames guide thee.”


End file.
